He also just sacked the head of the army. Rumors are because the army chief refused to crack down on protestors. This is going to get MUCH MUCH worse soon. He has the tacit approval of Russia and the west is too weak to step in. The crackdown coming soon will be quick and brutal and as a human being it saddens me to no end.

John Kerry: "President Yanokovich has the opportunity to make a choice, a choice between protecting the people that he serves -- all of the people -- and the choice for compromise and dialogue versus violence and mayhem,"

This sounds familiar.Like we might agitate until Ukraine is forced deeper into bed with Putin, then decide international interests are served and go back to watching scripted-reality shows.

don't you think the EU should step in WAY before the U.S. starts knocking down fences to invade someones back yard?

Usually the EU is considered part of the west; not just the USA. Where it gets murky is the former eastern bloc states that are now part of the EU.

Also, was just reading he declared the protests terrorists and under anti-terrorist law the enforcers have carte blanche to do what they wish. Arrest people without reason, invade homes, use force, use the military to supress rebellion etc.

DetrimentalScience:He also just sacked the head of the army. Rumors are because the army chief refused to crack down on protestors. This is going to get MUCH MUCH worse soon. He has the tacit approval of Russia and the west is too weak to step in. The crackdown coming soon will be quick and brutal and as a human being it saddens me to no end.

Yup. I hate to think about it, but it really sounds like they'll be sending in the tanks next. We could be looking at a very large massacre tomorrow.

DetrimentalScience:He also just sacked the head of the army. Rumors are because the army chief refused to crack down on protestors. This is going to get MUCH MUCH worse soon. He has the tacit approval of Russia and the west is too weak to step in. The crackdown coming soon will be quick and brutal and as a human being it saddens me to no end.

Well, he's alright as long as the line troops and cops are willing to crack heads, and he can find a general or two to give the orders. The Russians don't mind, and while the west may talk, and no one is going to do anything more than some sanctions. Things don't get really dicey in a country like that until the cops and combat troops turn on the government, and it doesn't look like they will for the moment.

The sad part in all this is the 'protesters' i.e the pro EU crowd will be left totally hopeless when the gauntlet comes down. The EU either can't and won't do anything so in many ways these protesters are doom right from the start. At worst these protester will look at the EU as having abandoned them in their greatest time of need and will feel betrayed. They will quickly turn pro Russia and Ukraine will be the Ukraine of the USSR again.

You can't be pro-something when at the end of the day not only does that 'something' back you up but actually leave you high and dry by yourself.

My 78-year-old Ukrainian mother had no idea about any of this when I talked to her yesterday. I wasn't surprised, she's 78 years old and not always up on current events, so I explained a bit about what I knew. Her father fought against the Bolsheviks so I made some comment about how history always repeats itself to which she replied, "Oh yeah, like Matthew McConaughy said in True Detective last week, time is like a flat circle" and I immediately had to reassess everything I know about my mother.

Hey, all you guys out there who whined about the U.S. being just as bad, or worse than Russia when you had to go stand in a fenced-in area to protest the Republican/Democratic convention? Yeah, go fark yourselves.

TheShavingofOccam123:It's Europe versus Russia. Almost the Cold War battle our countries all longed for but now it's satellite conflict. I'm betting on Russia. It looks like Europe won't gain a toe-hold in Asia.

It's NOT Europe vs Russia. Western media is trying to push this BS (because SCARY), but if you ask a Ukrainian then it's Ukrainians vs their corrupt leaders who placed themselves above the laws.

I gotta say, as much of a mess as this is, with the loss of life already incurred, with the loss of life that is sure to happen in the future, with the stamping out of human rights, etc., etc., I am just fine with sitting on the sidelines.

When Georgia was getting the smackdown I remember people saying Ukraine would be next on Putin's list. Seems they were right.

To all people saying "why is west too weak to step in?" It's because it's not in the EU's backyard, it's in Putin's back yard. Putin... who threatened to point nuclear missiles at Ukraine if they displeased him. I have a suspicion that the reason Ukraine is backing away from EU and toward Russia is entirely because of Putin, and threats like that. Some we know about, some we don't. There is more chance of invading Syria than there is in Ukraine.

Sadly, he's going to roll the apc's in, and start squishing the peasants who apparently don't like his iron fist rule. Sad, but it looks like lots are going to die. Just come to America people. Our rights are eroding, but, you generally don't have to worry about getting squished by a tank for protesting. Unless youre at kent state, or black. Bad plan then.

DetrimentalScience:Usually the EU is considered part of the west; not just the USA. Where it gets murky is the former eastern bloc states that are now part of the EU.

Also, was just reading he declared the protests terrorists and under anti-terrorist law the enforcers have carte blanche to do what they wish. Arrest people without reason, invade homes, use force, use the military to supress rebellion etc.

after typing, i thought you may have meant "the west" in European terms. thanks for the clarification.Also, the embolden is disgusting.

dj_bigbird:It's cute how you think anyone in the EU would be willing to wade in against the Soviets...er...Russians.

wade in against the Russian supported Ukrainian leaders in support of the Ukrainian separatists who i believe are the majority (by populace) and shouldn't be forced to adhere to the wishes of Russians (fark Russia).you're right, they more than likely won't get involved but they should and they look like a bunk of pants shiatting chumps for going about their business while their neighbors sacrifice their lives for freedom.

i hate to defend their government, but they have shown remarkable restraint so far. the protesters basically took over that whole neighborhood, put up roadblocks, etc, and the ukraine president basically let them sit there for a few weeks in the hopes they would get bored and vacate the area. what was he supposed to do? just resign office because a bunch of people were protesting? he had the military and the police keep an eye on them for weeks and finally gave them a deadline to get the hell out of there. i mean its terrible that it turned to violence, but neither side was going to budge, and the government will always win a battle like that. deep down i think the protesters were hoping the police would finally step in because no matter what happened, the government would look like the bad guys in that situation. but the government had no choice, what could they do, just let the protesters live there forever?

imagine if some protesters just took over wall street in new york or something, blocked the streets, burned tires, and threw rocks at police. i don't think our president or the local authorities would be anywhere near as patient with them as ukraine's government was. obama would have called in the national guard and they would have locked the place down in one day. there's no way our own government would allow a rebellious protest last as long as the one in ukraine has

Bit'O'Gristle:Sadly, he's going to roll the apc's in, and start squishing the peasants who apparently don't like his iron fist rule. Sad, but it looks like lots are going to die. Just come to America people. Our rights are eroding, but, you generally don't have to worry about getting squished by a tank for protesting. Unless youre at kent state, or black. Bad plan then.

Does Russia have drones? Cuz that would be interesting to see them used by another country in such a way.

Svoboda, one of the more right-wing neo-nazi groups involved in the demostrations urges people to keep fighting the "Muscovite-Jewish mafia running Ukraine". These are the protestors you are supporting. Congrats.

That is scary. Only reason to do this would be to put someone in who has no problem moving against the protesters. If this happens, I'd expect at least some factions to break apart and support the protesters leading to a serious escalation. I expect they would only mobilize from the East though, there were tanks on the way in December too, not sure what happened but they never made it to Kyiv.